KOCHI: 11.25 AM. Justice K Soman pronounced the judgment. Bihar native Asafak Alam would hang for his crime, the brutal rape and murder of a five-year-old girl in Aluva. The Additional District and Sessions Judge signed the 197-page verdict and, as is the custom, broke the nib of the pen. His assistant handed him a new pen to continue the proceedings.
Though not mentioned in any legal document, breaking the nib is a practice followed by judges after announcing the death penalty. The tradition, which has been around since the British rule, has several symbolic connotations.
For one, it symbolises that a pen used for taking a person’s life away should never be used again. Another notion is that through the act, judges awarding capital punishment want to distance themselves from the guilt of the judgment. It is also opined that a pen used to sign the death warrant is unholy and should not be used again.
While pronouncing the verdict, Judge Soman also quoted the late Nelson Mandela, as a message to society. “The true character of a society is revealed in how it treats its children,” the judge, quoting the anti-apartheid activist, said in the 169th paragraph of the judgment.
The verdict also discussed the social ramifications of the case. The court found that Alam possessed "a brutal mindset of the highest order". “This incident is being discussed in Kerala as they are emotionally disturbed, treating this incident as an example of a threat to children who are deprived of their chance to play and spend their precious childhood even in the surroundings of their houses. If the accused is permitted to be a part of society, it would be a threat to girl children, including those yet to be born,” observed the court.
Key witnesses who sealed Alam’s fate
What they told the court:
1. Gulzar said he saw the five-year-old girl walking with Asafak Alam and informed the child’s father whom he knew. The girl’s mother reached the shop and identified her from CCTV camera visuals. The footage too proved crucial evidence
2. Sushmi said she was travelling on the same KSRTC bus that Alam and the child boarded after he lured her out of her house on the day. Sushmi told the court that she saw the victim and the accused on the bus
3. Tajuddin was the one to see the girl with Asafak last. He recalled that when he asked Alam about the child, he lied and said it was his daughter
4. Murali said he had gone to the crime scene to dump waste when he saw Alam. However, he said he did not see the girl.
5. Sadiq was at the shop when Alam bought juice for the child
Victim’s parents meet the judge, thank him
KOCHI: Soon after Additional District and Sessions Judge K Soman pronounced the death penalty to Asafak Alam, the parents of the five-year-old girl visited the judge in his chamber and thanked him for the verdict. The prosecution had in the morning taken the court’s permission to let the parents in the courtroom. The court approved the request and directed the authorities to make necessary security arrangements. Lawyer Thanuja George, who represented the girl’s parents, accompanied them to the judge’s chamber. She said during the 10-minute meeting, the parents thanked the judge and said the judgment had been as per their expectation. “(Justice) Soman sir told them he did everything as per legal provisions. He also said he understands the grievances of parents who lose their child,” Thanuja said.
Asafak Alam, a habitual offender
KOCHI: A native of Khoraganch in Pararia village of Bihar’s Araria district, Asafak Alam is the third of Naimu Hal’s eight children. As per his Aadhaar card, Alam was born on January 1, 1995. He dropped out after class IV. After a scuffle with his father while in an inebriated condition, Alam left his village and started working as a pizza delivery man in New Delhi. In 2018, Alam was arrested for molesting a 10-year-old girl. He spent 28 days in jail. After securing bail with his brother’s help, Alam absconded and reached Kerala, where he worked in meat shops and construction sites. Those who know him said Alam would always pick fights with people after consuming liquor. When the police contacted his family members, they disowned him and refused to get involved in any matter related to him. Police also found that Alam created trouble wherever he worked. He frequently changed locations too.
Jail ‘till the remainder of his natural life’
Apart from the death sentence, the court awarded life imprisonment, specifically mentioning “till the remainder of his natural life”, under IPC sections 376 (2)(j), 377 and Pocso Act sections 5(I), 5(i) and 5(m). The court also sentenced him to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment.
Alam to face molestation case trial in New Delhi
KOCHI: Death row convict Asafak Alam will soon be shifted to New Delhi where he will face trial in a molestation case. A New Delhi court issued a production warrant last week in a case registered against Alam for molesting a 10-year-old. Arrested in 2018, Alam spent 28 days in jail, before getting bail. He absconded and came to Kerala.